Dawn of the Twili
by time2fite123
Summary: When two opposing forces decide to clash in Hyrule's now peaceful fields in order to avoid the destruction of their own homeland's, it is up to Link to take up the mantle of hero once more and quell both sides in the name of peace. However, as new enemies emerge, he will need more than just his sword and his favorite little imp to save the world this time.


A horse's footsteps could be heard a mile away, resonating off of the red rocks that lined each side of the sleepy town of Kakariko Village. The town was a slow one, content to be off the beaten path, only used to be a rest stop on the back way to the Lanayru Province. Its residents, kind folk with a great appreciation for the world around them, were always eager for a sort of distraction from the daily monotony and slowness.

As the town began to stir in the early hours of the morning, a man and horse were making their way up the beaten dirt path leading to the village. The horse's hooves created small clouds of dust as she walked, head bobbing in time with each step. The blonde man who rode atop her was silently thinking about the job he had to do. He had to meet with the village elder, Renado, and pick up some supplies for his hometown of Ordon, which had recently endured a long lasting drought that sucked the very life from the crops.

The man, Link, as many of his friends called him, adjusted himself in the saddle. Epona, the horse that he sat upon was as trustworthy and loyal as ever, not so much as flinching when her Master accidentally kicked her, a usual sign to speed up.

The corners of Link's mouth twitched into a quick smile as he observed the emerging town before him. The town had healed remarkably in the six years since an incident left it desolate and its population decimated. Several of the relief workers who had helped to rebuild many of the damaged houses had fallen in love with the quiet town and decided to stay there, so the population was now back to where it had been.

A whinny alerted Link to the horse beneath him who had suddenly stopped in front of a sparkling spring that the town had been blessed with by the spirit of Eldin. The spring was one of the few natural amenities the town had and was its lifeblood. Link's small smile emerged into a true one as he picked up on his faithful companion's request.

Swinging one leg overtop her form, the past warrior slipped gracefully off and landed with a thud upon the ground. Taking the lead, he tied the rope to a post, leaving Epona enough so that she could graze upon some of the brown-green grass that grew nearby and to drink from the spring. Link grabbed his sword off the horse as she slurped thirstily.

Link swung the sword of his shoulder as he began to walk down the path. The day was still early, with the time of dawn just having passed, so he decided not to bother any of the residents at this point. He made sure to pick his feet up high as he walked so he didn't get dirt in his shoes. It was these types of thoughts that came to mind when one took a stroll through the town.

The place was obviously scarred, with the occasional burn mark remaining upon a rock or a still crumbling wall that hadn't been torn down yet. But the town still had its pride. Tan buildings stood stout and wide, with tile roofs that helped to keep rainwater from seeping into the comforts below. The road itself was well maintained with deep rivets on each side from the wear of wagon wheels rolling endlessly across it.

As Link passed the Malo Mart, he had to chuckle just a bit. He remembered when the small boy had first started out his now chain business. The shop's namesake had been just seven when he opened his first store, doing so merely to aid those affected by the incident. However, after the time of danger passed and life gradually returned to normal, the young entrepreneur saw the opportunity and grasped it. Now, he ran an empire, one where almost every town able to call itself such had a Malo Mart.

Link passed by the currently operational inn that had once been completely vacated by the previous owners. They had passed away during the crisis, but their son and daughter had made it their priority to find their parents' legacy continued.

Deciding that a drink was long overdue, the swordsman walked up the wooden steps and pushed the door open, stepping inside and shutting it quietly. He glanced around the establishment. The tables and chairs around the lobby had been refurbished and cleaned. No longer were crates and metal stacked on top of each other to cover the holes in walls, but they now showed off beautiful landscapes.

Link sauntered over to the front desk, which also doubled as the bar and took a seat on one of the cushy chairs. He placed his sword next to him, leaning against the tabletop and then crossed his arms, placing his head in the space they had created. He had been travelling throughout most of the night so that he could get the supplies his town mates so desperately needed. The rain had only recently returned to Ordona, but the planting season was still in full swing thanks to the moderate temperature of the area, so the crops were beginning to grow.

The sound of feet on wood forced Link to pick his head up as a perky woman approached him. She looked to be the same age as the warrior with a head of long blonde hair. She was a cute girl, blue eyes and freckles adding to the already cute demeanor put off by her curved nose and peppy step. She wore a plain white shirt and a knee length red skirt. In one quick movement, she ducked behind the counter and pulled out a mug, some coffee beans, and a glass of milk. She poured the milk into the mug and set it over a small fire that was going behind the counter. She then grabbed a pestle and a colander and expertly ground the beans into a fine powder. Reaching behind her, she grabbed the now steaming milk and poured it through the coffee beans, allowing the flavors to mix. The coffee poured into another mug that Link hadn't noticed her get.

As a final touch, she added a quick sprout of mint and placed the mug in front of Link, who already had his blue rupee out. He handed it to her and, with his other hand, took the mug and brought it to his lips, blowing it so he didn't scald himself. His parched throat thanked him as the warm liquid graced it. Link placed the mug down, a content smile of his face.

"Mornin', hun," the hotel owner, whose name was Aurania, said cheerfully. She was used to Link showing up early and knew exactly what he liked. It was a routine they had long since perfected ever since she and her brother, Gavin, took over the inn.

Taking another sip, Link raised his empty hand in a small greeting. Aurania giggled slightly and asked, "Another long night?"

Link nodded and placed his cup down. "Yes, a small fire broke out in one of the barns, so our supplies are a bit drained right now." He pushed his signature green hat back a bit. Though his quest was long since over, he had taken quite a liking to the garb of the hero, albeit without the Master Sword, its purpose had been served.

"Oh, goodness," the barista remarked, "Is everyone alright?"

"A few burns when we went to put it out, but nothing serious." Link lifted up the sleeve of his tunic to show off the new burn that traveled across his toned bicep and up to his shoulder. It wasn't too serious and another dose of potion would clear it right up, but he had insisted on using most of it to help the others who'd been burned.

Aurania's eyebrows jumped for a second before she smiled and said, "The big hero can never stop, can he?" She winked at him before turning to see another guest coming down the stairs and sit at the bar. Waving to Link, the girl turned on her heels and started to get the guest's order.

Link sipped his coffee in relative silence as he watched the sun arise from the horizon through the window. When he was finished he left his mug where it was along with another blue rupee. Being a hero did have its benefits; people always giving him money for no reason, for example.

As the hero stepped outside, he was greeted with the coolness of the morning. It was a bit cold throughout the night he was travelling, so the early sun felt good, and Link could tell the day wasn't going to be hot.

Deciding Renado would be up at this point, Link headed over to his house right next to the spring. He knocked on the door, smiling at Epona who had taken to lying in the grass for a bit until she was needed again.

The door opened quickly to reveal a young woman of about eighteen. She had short black hair to match her big black eyes. Her face was wide, if a bit short. Her body, which was adorned with traditional Kakariko robes, was long and had almost no curvature to it. "Link!" the girl, Luda, daughter of Renado, exclaimed. "You're early! The shipment isn't supposed to be picked up for three more days!"

Link sighed and explained, "One of the barns caught fire and destroyed a good chunk of the remaining supplies, so I need them a bit earlier."

Motioning for Link to come inside, the tan skinned girl said, "That's terrible, but we don't have everything packaged quite yet. The wagon is ready, but none of the crates are on it and the Gorons haven't gotten here with the hot spring water yet." Luda paced back and forth while twisting her hands nervously. She always had been a bit of a control freak and didn't like it when things didn't go exactly according to plan.

"Luda, relax," Link commanded softly. "We're not in any immediate danger. I'll help you get everything ready until we can go, okay?"

Exhaling heavily, Luda smiled. She then turned and ran up some newly repaired stairs to the newly repaired second floor. Link sat down on one of the couches and listened to muffled voices speaking upstairs.

After a few seconds, two figures walked into the bottom floor. Luda and her father looked remarkably similar. They shared the same black hair and eyes, with the same tone of skin and even their body types were similar, although underneath the heavy clothing Renado was wearing, it was difficult to tell and it made him seem much larger than he was. However, where they differed was in their face. Whereas Luda's was wide and stout, Renado had a long face with heavy lips. In the six years since Link had met him, he had new wrinkles and some strands of his hair were turning gray.

Link stood up, bowed respectfully to the aging shaman and then sat down again.

Renado chuckled lightly and commented, "Always the polite one, aren't you? You are a friend; you needn't do such things in my home." Link smiled and nodded. Like he and Aurania, Link and Renado had an old routine that was replayed every time the situation allowed for it. "Would you like anything?"

"No, thank you, I just had some coffee at the inn."

"Oh come now, Link, you still must be hungry, and the day is still early; come have breakfast with me and Luda!" Renado insisted.

Link opened his mouth to say something, but was interrupted by Luda's eager hand. "Come along, Link." She yanked him up and then rushed him over to a bucket of clean water. Link removed his gloves and washed his hands before ascending the stairs behind the two owners of the home and when they'd arrived, he sat down at an empty chair.

The table was simple and clean with two glasses of tea still steaming and a small plate of bread yet to be cut. A dish of butter was placed next to the bread and a small knife had been inside. In front of Renado and Luda's dish there were plates filled with grits. Another was placed before Link and he thanked whomever it was had given it to him, he wasn't particularly paying attention.

Luda smiled and sat down in between the two men as she hungrily dug into her plate.

Trying to be slightly more civilized than his daughter, Renado cut the bread and took a slice for himself, slathering it with butter as he did so. "So, Link," he began before taking a bite of his bread. Link set his silverware down gently looked at the elder. "How has everything been in Ordon?"

"It's been alright, I guess, a bit quiet."

"Longing for the old days?" the old man asked with a chuckle.

"As much damage it caused, I wouldn't mind being able to travel around Hyrule again with…" he trailed off, suddenly becoming very interested in the plate of grits before him, placing a spoonful of the delicious substance in his mouth before he could say any more.

Luda's eyes went wide. "You were with someone? I never heard about that, did you, Father?"

"No, I haven't," Renado answered. "Although I must admit I am curious of this mystery person."

All eyes were on Link, who nervously swallowed the remaining grits on his plate. He reached for some bread, but was stopped by Luda's piercing gaze. Sighing, Link said, "It doesn't matter, she's gone."

"Gone…like…dead?" Luda asked sadly, fearing she was treading into dark waters.

"No, she's alive, I think, but I will never see her again."

Renado smiled comfortingly. "Do not say such things, child. The world is a big place, but people in the same place always have a way of making it back to each other." Finished with his breakfast, he stood up and began to collect the dishes, being careful not to damage them as they clinked together. He walked over to a pump with a bucket underneath and placed them inside.

While her father was busy doing the dishes, Luda whispered to Link, "I just have one more question… Would this girl happen to make Ilia jealous?"

Link abruptly stood and began to walk away before saying, "I will be down near the wagon helping to get things ready, come when you're ready."

Renado gave his daughter an angry glare and she shrugged innocently. "I thought it was a good question," she defended, going off to help Link get things ready.

The work had chewed up a good portion of the day. Most of the potions still weren't quite ready and the timber wasn't tied as of then. All of the meat was still in the coolers, magically enchanted to keep them from spoiling, and had only recently been salted. Fortunately, the vegetables were prepared and ready for shipping.

Link spent most of his time alone, tying up various planks of lumber and hefting them onto the wagon. The town wasn't without trees, but with everyone dedicating all of their time to farming, there was no one to cut the wood to make repairs.

After the wood was stowed away, he went to help with packaging the meat. Because of the lack of crops, the animals weren't producing enough meat on them to feed the small town. There were enough goats to give just barely enough milk, but the people did not want to be too much of a burden to their neighbors. The meat packaging went quickly and Link enjoyed catching up with some of the newer residents along with Barnes.

Finally there were the potions. After the incident, Link had made sure to learn how to make a red potion along with how to make lantern oil. The lantern oil was always supplied by a friendly hippie just outside the town, so Ordon didn't really worry about that, but red potion was hard enough to come by anyway, but with all of the fires being started because of the drought, people needed fast cures for burns by the barrel-full. Only a few ingredients needed to be added, but the difficult part was the mixing. It had to be mixed over an intense flame that only certain people could withstand for a long enough period of time to achieve the desired effect. The only ones, who could do it naturally, the Gorons, were far too clumsy to stir it effectively. In the end, very few people could actually manage to craft them, so it was a highly sought after art.

Link stepped out into the afternoon sun, wiping the sweat off of his brow. He had taken his shirt and tunic off due to the heat of the process. He now held a crate of red potion in one hand and his clothes in the other. He strolled down to where the wagon was being hooked up to Epona and he smiled enthusiastically. At the rate things were going, he'd be able to get back just as night fell.

He jogged the last little bit and then placed the delicate bottles in a special part of the wagon that was specifically designed to hold fragile items such as these. He let them drop gently into the compartment and then surveyed everything one last time. All of the supplies were neatly stacked so that they'd be easy to get out the next day. The only thing missing was a supply of spring water from the Gorons.

Suddenly, the bottles began to make small clinking sounds as they vibrated violently in their case. The ground beneath Link's feet seemed to vibrate as well and the wagon swayed slightly from side to side, but remained upright. Epona stamped the ground nervously and gave a whinny of disapproval.

Turning, Link smiled a bit wider at what he saw. Three boulders were tumbling towards him at a high speed, in direct line to run over everything that he had worked so hard to put together.

The middle boulder, which was slightly ahead of the rest, jumped up and unrolled itself to reveal the grinning face of a Goron; he then landed hard in front of Link, adding a bow for good measure. The other two boulders mimicked him and launched themselves skyward, landing in perfect position behind the first making sure to bow the same as the first. Link broke into a laugh as the three Gorons high-fived each other on a successful show.

"Thank you, thank you!" The first Goron said. He was a bit bigger than the other two and obviously the eldest. "The GBs are gonna be here all week!" he shouted proudly. The Goron brothers were a trio of Gorons that enjoyed their spectacles and were beginning to cause a buzz around Hyrule. They were composed of Alpo, Betsa, and Delsha. They're habit of making everything a show was irritating to some, but entertaining to those such as Link.

"Very nice, you guys," Link commented, an expecting tone coming across.

"Hold your Eponas, brother, we got your stuff!" The middle one, Betsa, said. With a huff, he leapt atop Alpo and then held his hands out. Delsha, the youngest, then grabbed on and was quickly hoisted onto his brother's shoulders. "Hup! Hup! Hup!" the middle Goron shouted.

In a flourish, the bottom two brothers rolled into circles opposite of each other so that they stayed in the same place. Delsha began to run on top of them when suddenly, Alpo burst open, sending the other two sky high. As they began to ascend, Betsa exploded open and launched Delsha even higher.

Link had to cover his eyes as he tried to keep track of the Goron meeting the sun. However, out of nowhere a barrel appeared before him. It was a simple barrel that only had one distinguishing feature, the emblem on the side that kept it permanently warm.

A whistle caught Link's attention and he snapped his head up to see Delsha hurling towards the ground at a breakneck speed. He was spread-eagle style and a large grin was plastered over his solid face. The other Gorons quickly ran over to where he was about to land and positioned themselves as if to catch the falling one.

Quicker than the eye could catch, Delsha landed in his brothers' arms, leading to a colossal heap on the ground with the three holding their heads in pain.

"I think we need to work on that one a bit…" muttered Alpo as he stood up and walked back over to Link. The three brothers dusted themselves off, laughing and giggling as their newest stunt almost succeeded.

Link joined in their laughter as he positioned the water in the exact cranny that had been left for it. With all of the supplies packaged and ready, the warrior was ready to head off. He had been hoping to get the work done early, but with how efficiently everyone had worked, he could now make it to his favorite hill just in time for his favorite part of the day.

After exchanging small talk for a moment, the three brothers rolled back into their forms and began their ascent of the mountain. Link then pulled his undershirt back over his head, but elected to leave his tunic off until the coolness of the night required him to put it back on. He casually strolled over to Epona and deftly leapt aboard the saddle in one effortless motion. With a small command, Epona began to trek back to Ordon, with all of the supplies ready and packaged.

Right as he was about to exit the city, however, Renado caught up with him. The old man was surprisingly fast for someone of his age. Link pulled back on the reigns and brought Epona to a halt. "Hello, Renado," the always polite man commented.

"Hello, my friend. I need you to do something for me," Renado replied, holding out a small envelope. Link took it from him and ran his fingers over the edge of the smooth paper. "Could you please take it to Bo, it holds a message from Queen Zelda; she wants the leaders of the surrounding towns and villages to make their way over to the castle for an emergency meeting. Here is one for you as well."

Link nodded silently.

"The Mailman could not make it to Ordon and keep his schedule with these sudden letters, so I told him that I would give it to you when you come. The meeting is in five days, on the 16th of Harvest, Hyrule time." The old man stepped back from the horse and smoothed his robes. "Safe travels, my friend."

Link nodded once more and gave Epona a quick kick that got the horse trotting off out of the village, supplies safely in tow.

Epona strode along at a slightly quickened pace at Link's urging across Hyrule valley, as Link hoped to make it to one special hill in time. He glanced at the sky and saw the sun rapidly falling into the fading blue. He grit his teeth in frustration until he cast his eyes forward to see the hill rising up in front of him.

"Hya!" he commanded to Epona and she obediently sped up as fast as she could whilst still keeping the cargo safe.

Within moments the two had arrived at the center of the hill, not at its bottom, but not fully scaled, but just enough whereas the slope of the hill caused one to face forward. He swung his leg over once Epona had come to a stop and gently stroked her neck. She gave an affectionate nuzzle and then bent her head once more to graze.

Link dropped his weapon down by his feet and flung himself onto the soft grass. He put his hands behind his head and simply gazed out to the horizon.

The reason that this hill was his favorite was because it allowed him the perfect viewing of his favorite time of the day, twilight. The middle of the hill was high enough to escape the obscurity of the trees' leaves and they even seemed to caress the setting sun. The sun cast a divine golden red over the world, allowing shadows to dance and play amongst themselves and everything became bathed in a silhouette that juxtaposed the orange of the sky that was rapidly diminishing the last vestiges of blue for its brief moment to shine before being consumed by utter blackness.

Link tilted his head slightly upwards and saw the moon staring at him, its luminescence not fully realized until later that night. The sun dropped as the moon rose, two partners intertwined in an elegant dance that, in the nature of twilight, contrasted the frivolous dancing of the elongated shadows.

Ever since his adventure, the hero had taken a liking, perhaps even a reverence, to twilight. He loved the dancing and contrasts and the feeling of transition. Twilight was a time of relaxation and signaled the end of the day's activities. Children were called into supper and farmers were locking away their livestock for the night, monsters retreated to their huts and the Stalkin would cease their sleep to emerge, and the city's lights would dampen as residents took it upon themselves to relax for the next day's coming work. It was peaceful time.

However, as he gazed upon the twilight's majesty, his face fell, as it always did. He could never shake the longing feeling that the time of day had carved into his gut. She was the one who had been with him the entire time and, even though she had her flaws, she was his best friend, perhaps even better than Ilia.

Link missed her, terribly. It was as if she was a part of him for the short period of time they were together and now he needed her back, or else he would never be whole again. He needed his best friend, and he could only hope that the Goddesses would find mercy upon her and her kind so that he could reunite with her once again in the afterlife.

He could never imagine being without Ilia, not that she would let him with her constant reminders of his availability as a bachelor. The girl was smitten with him, he was sure, but he knew her as nothing but the closest friend he could have. Or did that title belong to the other one? He just could not tell.

Finally, the sun disappeared beneath the blanket of the horizon and the moon cast its silvery light across the field, no traces of orange or gold or red remaining. Link shook his head and stood up, grabbed his sword, and mounted Epona, urging her to ride on.

The hero could not help but think of how repetitive his whole life was nowadays; even the variation was the same. Every time he passed by that hill at twilight, he would perform the same actions, admire the same qualities, and have the same thoughts rush through his head. "Ugh," he grunted as he tried to clear his head from the thought of monotony and he focused on the pathway and guiding Epona along it, though she could probably do it herself.

Time passed and Link was slowly beginning to fall asleep. He had not slept much for almost two days, only catching a few minutes here and there. He fell forward and then snapped back up, holding the now obvious bruise on his face from the saddle horn. Epona made a noise that sounded remarkably like a chuckled and Link hit her rump in playful punishment.

"Now, now, none of that, missy," he said through laughter.

Epona whinnied gleefully and continued strolling. However, as time passed, Epona seemed to get slower and slower, eventually moving no faster than a crawl.

Link kicked her sides and commented, "Come on, girl, move it. We have to get these supplies back and I don't want to have to sleep through the day!" He urged and encouraged and kicked and more, but all Epona did was slow down so much that she eventually just stopped.

Link grunted in frustration, but his attention was suddenly brought to something he hadn't noticed before. Epona's ears were vertical, her neck was twitching occasionally, and her tail swished back and forth skittishly.

Instincts that lay dormant in Link began to kick in and he dismounted his steed and unsheathed his sword. The sword he had now was of some of the highest quality in all of Hyrule. A long, double-edged blade had been forged from as pure steel as could be drawn from the earth and hands of man. Its hilt was the symbol of the Hyrule family with wings extending out from either side, inlaid with gold and silver, it was a sight to behold. Few swords matched it in terms of quality, save for the Master Sword which was mounted above the fireplace in Link's house. He could not bring himself to completely part with it, but its use was for emergencies only, and this was probably nothing more than common bandits.

"Epona, safety," Link commanded. With practiced ease, the horse turned and ran off a distance away, keeping Link within eyesight and earshot yet still aware of any possible dangers.

Link closed his eyes and simply let his body relax, listening intently and feeling where his gut wanted him to go. His face formed into a small smile as his battle instincts began to slowly return, giving him a much needed rush.

For a time, all seemed quiet, but out of nowhere, a man screamed, "Somebody, please, anybody, help me!"

Link immediately shot off in the direction of the voice. There was something off about the voice. Usually when there were bandits or Bokoblins the cries were panicky or desperate, but that scream, it had sounded as if it was in sheer terror and it filled Link with dread as he pressed on.

Finally, he stumbled upon the site of the cry. It had been behind an uprising of rocks and hidden underneath a canopy of leaves. A man, who was backed up to the rock face, had his own face twisted in a horrified expression. Tears rolled down his cheeks and mixed with sweat. His lean body was tense and nearly convulsing.

Link almost made a dash for him when what he saw made him stop in his tracks. Fighting inside the almost mini arena was not a usual monster or bandit, but something else entirely. He could not tell exactly what they were, but they looked like a mixture of light and shadows, each fighting the other, completely ignoring the man who had cried out. Link did not have time to process any sort of coherent thought as a light figure managed to strike on of the dark ones and send it flying in his direction.

Acting purely on muscle memory, Link deftly leapt out of the way before the dark figure slammed into the tree, shaking several leaves and branches loose with impact. However, everything that had fallen off of the tree merely fazed right through the dark figure. Link took a quick chance to look at the figure before unintentionally making eye contact. The figure's eyes were bright orange circles that looked oddly familiar.

Despite the heavy hit, the figure managed to get up, but instead of returning to the battle, it merely shouted, "Ete ees da jerpo en vrodeén! Cretatus!" Without hesitation, the remaining dark figures quickly dissipated into the ever-present shadows of night.

With that, everything transitioned to an eerie calm. Link ran over to where the man was still pressed against the rock and held up his sword in an aggressive position, ready to strike at any ill movement. None came.

The figures of light merely stood there and dropped their battle positions. They were tall and thin with muscles that seemed to stretch tightly across their whole bodies. Each one had their hair styled in a top knot with a long strand left to dangle freely in the front of their faces. Harsh crimson eyes burned into Link with ferocity unforeseen. "Our battle is not with you, warrior, lower your weapon." The figure in the front was the one who had spoken; three lines below his eyes appeared to signify his rank as the leader. There was a violent edge to his voice that was an obvious attempt at intimidation.

Link was not impressed. "Why did you attack this man?" he questioned threateningly.

The figure waved in a dismissive manner. "We did nothing. The battle had been raging far longer than this man had shown his cowardly face. He was squirming in the bush over yonder and he managed to get himself caught like a little mouse."

Link carefully considered the figures words and then lowered his sword, not completely, but enough to show that he was not going to initiate a fight. "What was the battle all about?"

"Yea!" the once cowering man demanded, "what the hell?"

The figure's eyes flashed sharply and he withdrew two shiny objects from inside a pouch he had strapped to waist and with a motion faster than any untrained eye could see, he threw them at equally blinding speeds. With an effortless twist of the wrist, Link knocked the object thrown at him aside, but the man next to him was not so lucky. He made a few gurgling sounds before collapsing to ground, dead in a pool of his own heart blood.

The leader figure pondered this for a moment before lunging at Link, a thin sword now in his hand. Link effortlessly countered and used the figure's momentum against him as he blocked the incoming, downward blow whilst stepping behind the figure, then he caught his own sword and pulled it towards himself and the figure, who, in contrast to the dark figure, seemed completely tangible. In this position, Link pressed the two connected blades against the neck of the leader, an obvious warning not to move.

However, the figure was not out of tricks as suddenly, his body became no more touchable than air and Link passed straight through him, which said hero responded to by rolling out of the figure's reach. He once again held up his sword in a ready position, but the leader sheathed his with one smooth motion.

"That is enough," the figure stated with authority. "I have seen what I need to, thank you, hero." Before Link could utter another sound, the figures disappeared in a flash of light, leaving only rapidly fading circles of light behind.

Link sucked in some of the cool night air and wiped his brow. It had been too long since he'd had a decent fight, however short this last one had been. He sheathed his sword and then knelt down over the dead man, careful not to get any blood on his clothes. Link rolled the man over and shook his head, he recognized the dead man. He had been an aide to Zelda, a hot-headed one at that. He was one of the few to object to the royal marriage, perhaps because he had wanted to woo the former princess.

That didn't matter, though, what did was the fact that Link know had a pretty good idea of why Zelda wanted to talk to the leaders and himself. He then proceeded to reach for and grab the object that the figure had thrown at him. He turned it in his hands and had to admire its craftsmanship. It was a throwing knife, smooth and double-edged with a razor sharp point. It felt perfectly balanced, but the curious part was that the sheen it had seemed almost precious, like silver. Inscribed on the flat of the blade was a bizarre, yet, again, familiar symbol of a bleeding eye.

Link stood up and flipped the knife in his gloved hand so that he was holding the handle. He then reached to a necklace that he was wearing and blew into it a well-known tune. Within a minute Epona semi-galloped to Link, cart in tow. She reared up slightly at the sight of the dead body, but quickly calmed at Link's gentle touch. He reached into one of Epona's saddle bags and pulled out a thick, beige colored bolt of cloth that he sometimes used as a blanket. Instead, he draped it over the unfortunate aide and, after a bit of adjusting, then wrapped the body completely. He hefted the corpse onto his shoulders and then opened up the cart. There was a small open space at the top that was reserved for any extra resources he might pick up, but the slot was quickly filled with the body.

After he made sure the body would not go anywhere, Link closed up the cart and walked over to Epona. "You ready for a few long days, girl?" he asked in a hushed tone. Epona neighed and nuzzled the crook of Link's neck in response. "We're gonna need to head to Ordon, drop everything off, then set out immediately for Castle Town. I'm not waiting five days for any meeting."

With that, Link mounted Epona once more and got her started off in the right direction towards Ordon. Looking up at the stars, he closed his fingers around the hilt of his own sword and smiled as he felt the Master Sword's perfect grip in his imagination. Things were about to become quite varied.

A/N: Hey guys, this is my first fic on this site. I've had this idea in my head for a long while and just needed to get it out somewhere. The only thing I really have to say about this is the language the dark figure was using is a made up one that I'm literally creating as I go along and it will probably have words that actually exist in other languages, so don't worry if you see one that you recognize, it doesn't mean what you think.


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